The Chain
by Leopardstorm
Summary: Songfic. Leafpool and Crowfeather reflect on the impact and the consequences of their ill-fated relationship. R


**This is my first songfic, so forgive me if it's a little lame. I was listening to this song whilst writing a chapter for Nuclear War Warriors, and I just put this song and this chapter together. I think it goes well.**

**Disclaimer – I do not own 'The Chain', Fleetwood Mac, or anything affiliated with these brands. Oh, and I don't own Warriors either. :(**

**Regards, **

**Leopardstorm**

**PS – This chapter definitely contains spoilers for The Fourth Apprentice and Fading Echoes. Just making sure I got that clear.**

**The Chain**

_Listen to the wind blow,_

_Watch the sun rise,_

Leafpool woke up in the Warriors den. She hated it in there; too little space and too much snoring. She sneezed miserably and woke up to the sound of rain pound against the den. Getting out, she looked out across the rain-sodden camp, all of the dens taking a battering as the rain and the wind pushed against the life of the camp.

Her gaze panned around, the apprentices' den, the nursery, the rebuilt elders' den and finally the medicine den. She spotted her son Jayfeather, still snoozing in the darkness of the cave. _I gave up everything I care about…was it worth it in the end? I lost my family, my love, my kits, my calling…and now I am condemned to a warrior's life._

Don't get her wrong, she never regretted having kits; she couldn't, she was too proud of them. She just regretted her position in the Clan.

_Running in the shadows,_

_Damn your love, damn your life._

Then she lost Crowfeather. She lost his loyalty; his love and he hated the kits they had together. Was life worth living? Was loving him worth it? She might have saved Cinderpelt had she stayed. She would never have had kits if she hadn't fallen for him. The trouble was, when she fell in love with the black tom, she had fallen hard.

_And if you don't love me now,_

_Then you'll never love me again._

It was though she had become invisible as soon as they had departed at the broken ThunderClan camp. When the badgers left, their love went with it. She was almost disgusted at herself for what she had done to the forest.

She felt the worst for Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw. They were the real victims. She knew the right thing to have done would have been to have had the kits in front of all her Clanmates so that only one soul would have been destroyed beyond repair. But, as a result of her selfish act, she had destroyed her sister's relationship with Brambleclaw, her relationship with her family and her Clan, the love of her life and the result of what they had done, and herself and her former mate had brought their Clans into disrepute. _What have I done…?_

_I can still hear you saying,_

"_It will never break the chain," (break the chain)._

Crowfeather was, once again, sat at the stream that he and Leafpool used to meet at when they were young, and the fate of their Clans weren't laid upon their fragile shoulders.

He sighed, letting the memories flow over him. He remembered the day his love devoted her life to him by letting herself run away with him. He remembered the day when he saved her from certain death on a cliff face.

_Listen to the wind blow,_

_Down comes the night_

_Running in the shadows,_

_Damn your love, damn your lies._

Those lies! I couldn't get them out of his head. For moons upon moons, he thought he just had one single kit, and that his travelling friends Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight had three blessed kits. And then in one single night, he found out that he had also had three more kits with the only she-cat he truly loved. That's not to say that he never loved Feathertail, just that he thought that he never had enough time with her for the relationship to blossom.

_Break the silence,_

_Damn the love, and damn the lies._

The whole situation came to blows in that fateful Gathering, when his own daughter had opened the secret, in effect killing a whole prey-pile of rabbits with one swipe. Why did those lies have to be lies? Why couldn't what cats believed for so long be true? Why did the warrior code have to be so strict, and make so many cats lives a misery?

Nightcloud and Breezepelt had cut off all ties, and were always seen hissing and whispering in the background. It felt like they were plotting against him, and he felt like an outsider in his own Clan. However, he still felt proud of his ThunderClan kits. He knew that they were going to be big in the destiny of their Clan, and he only wished he could have been a true father to them, watching them grow up to be the cats they were going to be, like Brambleclaw had. He loved them, looked after them, and the feelings that his body language vented spoke a million words.

And if you don't love me now,

_Then you'll never love me again,_

_I wouldn't be surprised if Leafpool never wanted to see me again, _Crowfeather thought sadly as he walked miserably back to camp. _I know I still love her; I just never came through for her when the moment mattered. I promised her that when the moment came, I would not fail her. I don't normally break promises. _

This chain of events had caused a black cloud to be forever hanging over this beleaguered family, but it was a cloud they had to bear. However, the family was held together like a chain of super-strong branches. History had been made, and now the chain sent consequences through every branch involved. This 'Chain', however, was still Crowfeather's family, and although he caused him so much heartbreak it was a miracle it was still beating, he felt a certain amount of warmth for them.

_I can still hear you saying,_

"_It will never break the Chain," (break the chain)._

**What do you think? Good? Lacklustre? Review!**

**Remember to read more stories by Leopardstorm, and don't forget to review!**

**Regards,**

**Leopardstorm**

**PS – Leopardstorm is now on FictionPress! Look him up under the same name…you may be pleasantly surprised…**


End file.
